The initial call came to Tom Watson’s cell phone about 13 months ago. He was in South Dakota hunting pheasant. Ted Bishop, the president of the PGA of America, was hunting for the right man to end the U.S. reign of futility in the Ryder Cup — a stretch that has seen the Europeans win seven of the last nine competitions.

Bishop was on the end of the phone line, briefly interrupting Watson’s hunting trip, seeking to put an end to the European domination, which continued two months ago with the U.S.’s latest loss at Medinah. And Watson was his man all along.

“I told him, ‘Boy, I’ve been waiting for this call for a long time,’ ’’ Watson recalled yesterday after being officially introduced as the 2014 U.S. Ryder Cup captain at a press conference on the 80th floor of the Empire State Building.

Watson yesterday addressed some of the potential issues to his captaincy, including his age (63), which will make him the oldest Ryder Cup captain in team history.

“The idea of being captain for a team of youngsters will be questioned — ‘Why is Watson, being the old guy, being the captain?’ ’’ Watson said. “I deflect that very simply by saying this: We play the same game.’’

The news of Watson’s appointment was universally praised by players, many of whom reacted through social media, including Tiger Woods, who has drawn criticism from Watson in the past.

Watson blasted Woods on several occasions like, in 2010 when he said, “I think he needs to clean up his act and show the respect for the game that other people before him have shown.”

Yesterday, Watson called any differences with Woods “water under the bridge’’ and said, “My relationship with Tiger is fine.’’

Woods tweeted: “I’d like to congratulate Tom Watson on his selection as Ryder Cup captain. I think he’s a really good choice. Tom knows what it takes to win, and that’s our ultimate goal. I hope I have the privilege of joining him on the 2014 United States team.”

Watson, who called Woods “the best player maybe in the history of the game,’’ said, “I hope Tiger is on my team. And if he’s not on the team for any unforeseen reason, you can bet that he’s going to be No. 1 on my pick list.’’

Watson said he knows Woods respects him “as being captain because he knows that I want to win. Obviously there’s nobody else in the golf world who wanted to win more than Tiger, and he did it for so many years. He dominated this sport unlike anybody in the history of the sport. So I want him on my team.’’

Jack Nicklaus, who was the last American to captain the team twice (1983 and 1987), said, “Tom always has been a wonderful golfer and remains one, but he is also a good leader. He has had a lot of experience in the Ryder Cup, as a player and a previous captain. So I am certain that when he goes to Gleneagles, he will prepare properly to do a nice job.’’

Watson said he sees his role as captain as “like being a stage manager.’’

“I prepare the stage for the actors, in this case the players,’’ he said. “It’s going to be a great journey these next couple years, and I hope that we will change the tide of losing The Ryder Cup seven out of the last nine years. We are tired of losing. I learned how to win by hating to lose.’’